What's so smart about climate smart agriculture?

Through using zai, a local technique that captures nutrients and water better, farmers can improve yields and soil fertility. Zai is one of many climate smart options that farmers can implement to create resilience. Photo: Aissatou Nobre (IFDC)(view original)

Dec 10, 2012

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Cecilia

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In a world where some countries will experience temperature peaks over 45-50°C, finding crops and vegetation that can deal with such heat stress will be a struggle. There may in fact be a limit to how much we’ll be able to adapt. But there are things we can do that make us armed enough to tackle the climate challenge. One of these things is looking at what climate smart agriculture can offer smallholder farmers.

If you have followed our blog, I am sure you have heard the term “climate smart agriculture” before. But what are these “climate smart practices”? What do they look like on the farm, and are they really working?

The presenters at the "Role of the UN in achieving climate smart agriculture" COP18 side event last week gave a rundown of some of the farming practices that can help create farmer resilience while improving food security and in some cases deliver mitigation co-benefits.

In Burkina Faso, the CCAFS West Africa regional team is engaging with farmers and farmers’ organisations to help them change practices towards techniques such as zai, that help farmers deal with the staggeringly hot and dry farming conditions. See photos from this work: Burkina Faso farmers show off their zai knowledge.

One way to overcome storage issues has been through introducing metallic silos, or containers. Promoted by FAO and others, the simple idea has come with great benefits, Meybeck explained. Through silos, farmers have helped reduce greenhouse-gas emissions, as less food needs to be produced, improved food security and resilience in the local communities. One other really important side effect has been the creation of local jobs, in countries who now produce their own silos, and thus boosting the economy.

As seen in the post, climate smart agriculture is thus not one really clever practice. Rather it is about simple but transformative approaches that put resilience and adaptation upfont, while also valuing mitigation. That is what makes it "smart" - it is not about one way, but many ways to achieve a better future.

Talking climate smart action with farmers means offering them a portfolio of available actions, delivering need-based information and helping to ensure that enabling policies and institutions are there to support farmers.

Cecilia Schubert is a communications assistant at the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS). Follow the latest developments from the UN climate talks in Doha on our blog, on twitter @cgiarclimate and #ALLForest.